I have a relatively small lawn (maybe 5 thousand square feet spread
across a couple of patches) that has developed seemingly more brown
than green spots, including a bit of a mat of dead grass.

I know I need to do something to condition the soil and re-seed this
fall.

I am considering aerating, dethatching, and then overseeding. I am
confused about which of these tasks requires a power machine (and
hence rental) vs. the ability to do by hand.

If the marginal benefit is not too great, I would prefer not to have
to rent 3 separate machines.

- My understanding is that aeration requires a power machine to do it
right, so presumably I need to rent an aerator.

- Do I need a dethatcher or could I do just as good a job with a special
dethatching rake?

- Do I need an overseeder machine or can I do almost as good a job with a
standard Scott's broadcast spreader?

- If I rent an overseeder, do I still need an aerator or will the
overseeder do a reasonably good job of opening up the soil?

- Finally, is this the right order of operations:
Aerate
Dethatch
Fertilize/lime
Seed/overseed
Water
Water
Water...

Thanks